It was the summer of 2012, where I found myself utterly captivated by the enticing world found underneath the deep blue colored waters of the Sea of Cortez. I would be spending the next two weeks, with my Intro to Marine Biology course, snorkeling around various islands of Baja California studying marine organisms. In those two weeks, not only had I learned a great deal on marine life, I had also made a significant realization. As of that summer, my inquisitive nature awakened a hidden passion, the desire to understand marine life beyond the naked eye. Noticing my dexterity in marine biology, my teachers at California State University of Northridge recommended I think about a career in marine science; soon after I was absolutely set on that
Throughout time, of course, marine biologists have created methods—or “techniques” (163)—that allow such a task to become more straightforward. The method which mainly comes to mind involves close observation of the organism, and noting as much of its minor and major characteristics while attempting to identify it. By recording such details as the organism’s symmetry, general shape, colors, external appearance, internal structure, and measurement, marine scientists can refer back to identification guides to figure out what specific classification their organism fits in, or whether they have the right taxonomy in mind or not (Mertz, Garrison and Baker 163-164). Upon confirming the organism’s identity with the noted characteristics, finding extra information about it becomes much easier
With the chance to experience policy, and field research, I am hoping to narrow down the idea of what I want to do after graduation, or what to tailor the rest of my courses at Bowdoin to. I also expect to gain experience with different oceanographic instruments. My Bowdoin ocean courses can only supplement class time with small cruises up different estuaries around coastal Maine. A larger boat experience with larger oceanographic instruments and possibly larger datasets would better prepare me for research. Furthermore, I expect to become more independent as a result of this program, and confident in my research capabilities and
My vomit clouded the ocean surface with a purple-brown color before fading below the depths. On the other side of the vessel, I re-equipped my mask and plunged into the water to be greeted by my aunt – she was to be my snorkeling partner as she had much experience in the depths of Hawaii. When I submerged my head it was almost as if I had entered a new world. This unseen dimension housed a coral reef that vibrantly shone with a mixture of bright reds and deep blues. The reef almost seemed to pulsate as thousands of fish darted in and out of their subterranean homes. The water was thick with salt and teemed with plankton. We often resurfaced to point out fish to each other. I remember my aunt telling me of the environmental dangers of touching the still-living coral. “If you pierce its skin it will likely become infected and die, and all of the fish who live in it will die too,” she expertly explained. From then on I kept my distance to at least 5-6
As a mariner its important to know about the marine life, that was one reason I have chosen this topic for my today’s short presentation.
Seaworld is a giant marine life theme park. The greatest attraction to these many theme park would be those killer whales. In fact, these killer whales are the face of the park. As gigant as these mammals are, seaworld is keeping them in some pretty tight quarters. Mr. Jett and Mr.Ventre says “Wild killer whales can swim a hundred miles daily as they socialize, forage, communicate, and breed. In stark contrast, with little horizontal or vertical space in their enclosures, captive orcas swim only limited distances, with most spending many hours surface resting.” The animals don't have the freedom they need. Also when taking the whales out of their natural habit the whales tend to be depressed and not as heath in that situation. They need their freedom in the big ocean blue. Bring them into the small living units, breeding whales in captivity all for the entertainment of humans. At young ages the calves are taken away from their mothers on to a new seaworld park. Mothers of the calves have even been seen denying their offspring.
Have you ever been in a situation where you had to make a decision where you life or others lives were in danger, for marines and other troops in combat it was a life style they would make decisions like this on a daily basis. Is it healthy for average people to have to make choices like this and does it cause any type of depression or mental weakness? Or does it make you a stronger person mentally? People often wonder what its like to be in there shoes there for when you meet a marine you catch yourself always asking the questions what is it like being at gun point or what's the scariest story you have from your experiences overseas. And i am here to answer those questions.
The Great Barrier Reef is home to a remarkable number of organisms. The coral itself is made up of the skeletons of tiny, flowerlike water animals called polyps, held together by a limestone substance produced by a type of algae. Hundreds...
At the Aquarium of the Pacific, many different oceanic habitats are presented. These exhibits give the public an idea of the different environments our own oceans hold, providing a hands-on learning experience in the comfort of their own city. The two habitats that interested me are the coral reef and deep ocean. Both the coral reef and deep ocean are very different from each other, having varied ways of survival for the plethora of plants and animals that call those places home.
The deep sea is one of the most hostile environments in the world, which a living organism is subjected to. As you progress from the surface (the epipelagic zone) through to the abyssopelagic zone near the basin of the ocean; the environmental characteristics begin to alter dramatically. Light, pressure, oxygen, temperature and food are abiotic factors that have all led to the fascinating adaptations of deep sea life. Pressure alone increases by 1 atmosphere for each 10m in depth which is an astonishing rate. The deep sea temperature remains between 2-4°c, which is just another factor inhabitants must overcome in order to survive, along with a reduced quantity and accessibility of essential factor’s like ;oxygen, food and light[3].
Imagine a lush underwater place. Beautiful structures colorful animals and places that would never have been thought of before. In reality that's not what it really looks like, really the ocean is a desolate place that is barren like a desert. Many marine species have been lost by as much as 49%.(seeker) A big part of that reason is because of coral bleaching which causes as stated above a decline in species that depend on the coral as there home. Coral bleaching is a serious problem that could cause problems for everyone if we don’t fix it.
Marine biology is the study of marine life in salt water ecosystems. It can also be described as observing how marine species interact with one another. Certain species of underwater plants can affect the environment in which they are put in. Some branches of marine biology study the affects of said plants. There are many branches of marine biology. Many people tend to study dolphins or sharks, since those are the most known marine animal. Only 30% of the world's oceans have been explored. This means that by being a marine biologists, I can have the chance to explore parts of the world that have never been seen before. Not many people are willing to go through the dark places of the oceans. This is what I want to do, because I would be the first one to see what is hidden behind the veil of darkness.
The 7,109 islands that make up the Philippines have a diverse range of both aquatic and land-dwelling life-forms. The coral reefs there and throughout the world are facing new challenges. Pollution, climate change and destructive fishing methods all threaten the health of fragile coral reefs. This is where Samantha has focused much of her work. She dives, takes amazing photographs and videos, and spreads her excitement about marine biology to teach and encourage others about the importance of conserving our oceans and coral
The Great Barrier Reef is an exemplary model of the famous exotic coral reef seen in a copy of the National Geographic or the popular animated film Finding Nemo. Located on the coast of Australia, it is known as the “largest biological organism in the world” (“Human Impact on the Great Barrier Reef” par. 1). The idea bears that coral reefs are again not an assortment of organisms functioning separately but rather working together to thrive. The groups of coral that are seen in t...
Oceans are such so vast that people underestimate the impact their actions —seeming so insignificant— have on them. Humans have by and large taken the oceans for granted; not considering how important a healthy ocean is to our survival. A popular mind-set is that the oceans are a bottomless supply of fish, natural resources, and an infinite waste dump. There are myriad reasons why the oceans should be saved and the most obvious one is marine life. With 71% of the Earth being covered by water, it is obvious that sea creatures are predominant form of life, making up 80% of the species of life on Earth. However, as important as marine life is, that is not the only reason why saving the oceans is crucial. The ocean floor provides natural resources such as, oil, natural gas, petroleum, minerals, medications, and ingredients for foods and products. The economic benefits of the oceans are huge and significant, as well. Fishing and fish products have provided employment to 38 million people and have generated about $124 billion in economic benefits. However, oceans are on the verge of crisis, marine life, natural resources, transportation, the economy, and important ingredients are at risk due to overfishing, pollution, and acidification. Thus, in this essay I will argue that, oceans are not impervious to human activity and threatening the health of the ocean threatens the health of humanity, since oceans key to our survival.
Did you know that more than 90 percent of all organisms that have ever lived on Earth are extinct? According to Pandey, the author of Humans Pushing Marine Life toward ‘Major Extinction’, nearly 10,000 species go extinct each year, and this rate is estimated to be 1,000 times higher than the natural extinction rate (1). Human beings are causing irreversible damage to the oceans and their wildlife, which is being led by two major reasons: Commercial fishing or over-fishing, which damaged the marine environment and caused a loss in the marine life diversity, and pollution, which is a primary way of the extinction causes that drastically modifies the marine life habitat. As a result of the commercial fishing and pollution, many of the marine species will start disappearing of the oceans. Briggs emphasizes that over-fishing “has induced population collapses in many species. So instead of having less than a hundred species at risk, as was the case some 30-40 years ago, there are now a thousand or more (10).”